Monday, February 23, 1998Last modified at 11:45 p.m. on Sunday, February 22, 1998

Flames from a burning Israeli flag reach towards American and British flags Sunday Feb 22 1998 during a pro-Iraq demonstration held at the An Najah university in Nablus. Activists of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine carried a mockup of a Scud missile, and burned Israeli, American and British flags during the demonstration. (AP Photo/Nasser Istayyeh)Iraq agreement fails to slow U.S. build-up

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Pentagon started a call-up of reserves in case of they're needed for a military strike against Iraq and the Clinton administration withheld judgment Sunday on whether an agreement announced in Baghdad will be adequate to settle the dispute over weapon inspections.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan's spokesman in Baghdad, Fred Eckhard, said Iraqi President Saddam Hussein had agreed on a plan to open up presidential sites to inspectors from the United Nations. Diplomats were hoping the agreement would satisfy President Clinton and forestall and military action by the United States.

Clinton spent the afternoon in the Oval Office where he was in touch with security advisers and was constantly being briefed on the situation, said spokesman Joe Lockhart. He said lack of secure telephone service between Washington and Baghdad had kept details of the agreement to a minimum.

White House press secretary Mike McCurry would not assess the preliminary accounts.

"We've got a lot of serious questions," McCurry said. "It's a very serious matter at a serious time, and we want to get some questions answered."

Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's spokesman said she had a "short phone briefing" with Annan that was short on details and telephoned her counterparts in France and the United Kingdom to compare notes.

"She did not receive a comprehensive assessment," said State Department spokesman James P. Rubin. "And therefore we are not in a position to make a judgment whether the principles for a peaceful solution have been achieved."

In any event, Rubin said, "whatever happens we will be looking for actions, not words," on whether Iraq meets the terms set down by the United States for settling the dispute. And one of those conditions, he stressed, was unlimited access to suspect sites.

Even before the mid-afternoon announcement of a possible deal, Clinton was talking with world leaders about promising signals from the Iraqi capital. Lockhart said he telephoned Sultan Qaboos of Oman and Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain, Clinton's major ally in the Iraq showdown. Lockhart said Clinton and Blair agreed to look closely at the details of any arrangement.

News of the agreement came after Albright said the United States will act alone against Iraq if any agreement Annan brings back to New York Tuesday jeopardizes U.S. interests.

"It is possible that he will come with something that we don't like, in which case we will pursue our national interests," Albright said on ABC's "This Week."

She said Saddam's ability to threaten the world with weapons of mass destruction must be diminished, by military means if necessary. "We will pursue that, that's what our job is, that's what we will do," she said.

To emphasize the threat, Defense Secretary William Cohen announced on NBC's "Meet the Press" that he was making the first request for reservists to provide combat support for the 32,000 troops stationed in the Persian Gulf. "We are hoping for a peaceful solution, but we are prepared to exercise a military option if necessary," he said.

Marine Maj. Mary Baldwin at Central Command headquarters in Tampa, Fla., said Cohen is asking Clinton for authority to call about 500 members of the National Guard and Reserve for logistical support. She said they will include an Army chemical company, Air Force special operations C130 air crews, Navy harbor surveillance personnel and a Coast Guard port security unit.

She said the particular units have not been designated. Cohen said that people would be mobilized from various bases.

Administration officials said Annan left for Iraq fully aware that there could be no maneuvering room on the key issues of total access and operational control for U.N. weapons inspectors. The Iraqi proposal of putting a time limit on inspections was unacceptable, they said.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said on ABC that he was "very nervous" about investing any negotiating authority in Annan when it was American lives that would be on the line in a military conflict. "We shouldn't have set up this scenario that the Secretary General of the U.N. is making those decisions," McCain said.

He and other senators said Congress is prepared to approve a resolution of support for military action but only if it includes backing for a long-term plan to end Saddam's ability to menace the world. "We have to be prepared to go the full distance, which is to do everything possible to disrupt his regime and to encourage the forces of democracy," Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., said on ABC.

Both chambers could take up Iraqi resolutions this week. National Security Adviser Sandy Berger, on "Fox News Sunday," repeated the administration position that it would welcome congressional backing, but "I don't think we believe we need it as a legal matter. But, obviously, it would be a preferable way to proceed."

Bill Richardson, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, joined Albright, Cohen and Berger on the Sunday news programs as the administration continued its campaign to convince Americans that military action against Iraq is justified and needed.

Last week, the same officials met noisy protests and skepticism as they carried that message around the country. In Washington state, a spokesman for the University of Washington said Richardson canceled a similar Monday night appearance at the school, where activists had pledged to disrupt his speech.

Protesters greeted Albright Sunday when she appeared for her ABC interview, and Clinton went through an anti-war rally as he was driven to church Sunday morning.

Albright said the administration is listening to American opinion, but stressed that "this is not an issue that is going to be decided by public opinion polls. This is a national security issue."